Michael Alan Ratney

Consul General Michael Ratney

Michael Ratney arrived in Jerusalem on July 29, 2012, the 50th American diplomat to lead this mission since the United States established a permanent diplomatic presence here in 1857.

Before assuming his duties in Jerusalem, Ratney was Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Media, leading State Department efforts focused on engaging foreign media. Just prior to that, he established and served as the first Director of the Office of International Media Engagement, where he managed State Department initiatives to ensure accurate and positive coverage of U.S. policy by foreign media. From 2009 to 2010, Ratney served as Spokesman for the State Department's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.

Since joining the Foreign Service in 1990, Ratney served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the American Embassy in Doha, Qatar, as well as tours in Mexico City, Baghdad, Beirut, Casablanca, and Washington, DC. He earned a BS in Mass Communication from Boston University in 1983, and an MA in International Affairs from the George Washington University in 1989. In the course of his Foreign Service career, Ratney studied Arabic, French, and Spanish.

Ratney is married to Karen Sasahara, also Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State, and their home is Massachusetts.